Cisco flips for 'flip'

Cisco Systems Inc is buying digital camcorder-maker Pure Digital Technologies as it seeks to push further into the consumer market.

It will also pay up to $15 million in retention-based incentives to employees who continue at the acquired company, Cisco said in a statement.

Pure Digital, whose colorful, pocket-sized Flip Video camcorders let people quickly make and share videos on the Web, has sold more than 2 million units in the United States so far, Cisco said.

This acquisition will take Cisco's consumer business to the next level as the company ... drives the next generation of entertainment and communication experiences, Ned Hooper, senior vice president of Cisco's corporate development and consumer groups, said in the statement.

Cisco, which has about $29 billion in cash, recently said it was looking for acquisitions, especially to bolster its presence in consumer electronics.

Pure Digital, based in San Francisco, is backed by venture capital investors including Sequoia Capital and Benchmark Capital.